About the Library

Learn about the Library, its finances, governance, art collection and more. For information not included in this section, please contact our administrative office at 847-432-0216.

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The Library owns an extensive art collection, assembled over the years. The pieces, located throughout the Library, include paintings, sculptures, and murals, many of which were donated by patrons. Take a tour of the Library's art here or during your next visit to the Library.

The Library gratefully acknowledges the funding and assistance provided by the Highland Park Cultural Arts Commission for this project.

Sylvia Shaw Judson grew up in Lake Forest and was the daughter of well-known architect Howard Van Doren Shaw and the poet Frances (Wells) Shaw. Judson studied at The School of the Art Institute in Chicago on and off between 1915 and 1918 and later in Paris at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière. Her works have been exhibited in museums, at Chicago’s Century of Progress Exposition (1933), and at the New York World’s Fair (1939). Shaw’s work can be found in the collection of the White House, in the offices of the President of the Philippines, and at the Massachusetts State House.

Sylvia Shaw Judson received much posthumous attention in the late 1990s when her Bird Girl sculpture (1938) appeared on the cover of the book “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil,” by John Berendt. The sculpture also appeared in the opening scene of the movie with the same title.

The Reader is the first sculpture patrons approach when entering the Library. It is one of the most familiar and loved works of art in the Library, and a magnet to the younger set of library users.

Frederick William Boulton was born in Mishawaka, Indiana. He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and the American Academy, as well as the Académie Julian, Paris. From 1938-1959 he lived in the Braeside area of Highland Park on Pine Point Drive. He was a painter, and an illustrator, and also worked as a general craftsman who showed at venues such as the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and the Highland Park Women’s Club. Boulton was an art director and vice-president at the advertising agency J. Walter Thompson Co., Chicago.

Beth Shadur, a Highland Park artist and Artist-in-Education for the Illinois Arts Council, has created over 125 large murals as public, private and community art projects in the United States and Great Britain. She has exhibited widely in the United States and abroad. Her work has been exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago and other museums across the country and is included in many private and public collections.

The Fantasy Mural is one of several murals the artist has created for the Library. In the mural, Shadur created a “trompe l’oeil” perspective with windows opening to various imaginary scenes.

Sylvia Shaw Judson grew up in Lake Forest and was the daughter of well-known architect Howard Van Doren Shaw and the poet Frances (Wells) Shaw. Judson studied at The School of the Art Institute in Chicago on and off between 1915 and 1918 and later in Paris at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière. Her works have been exhibited in museums, at Chicago’s Century of Progress Exposition (1933), and at the New York World’s Fair (1939). Shaw’s work can be found in the collection of the White House, in the offices of the President of the Philippines, and at the Massachusetts State House.

Sylvia Shaw Judson received much posthumous attention in the late 1990s when her Bird Girl sculpture (1938) appeared on the cover of the book “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil,” by John Berendt. The sculpture also appeared in the opening scene of the movie with the same title.

Harbor Seal is located outside the Library’s lower level entrance, in the courtyard pool. The sculpture was donated to the Library in memory of Helen Kuh Kuhns, a former president of the Library Board of Trustees.

Walter Koeniger was born in Germany and came to the United States around 1910. He became a member of the Woodstock, New York, artists’ colony in 1912. Koeninger lived in New York’s Catskill Mountains and spent his thirty-year career sketching and painting frozen water scenes around his home. He is known for his paintings of snow-covered landscapes and used fresh, glowing colors to convey the crisp, vigorous mood of his settings.

Paha Ska was a contemporary Native American artist and a member of the Ogalla Sioux tribe. He resided in Keystone, South Dakota for nearly 50 years. Phah Ska means “White Hills” in English. Ska is a self-taught artist who attempted to portray an Indian way of life in his work.

Rudolph Ingerle was born in Vienna, Austria and immigrated to the United States when he was 12. He studied at John Francis Smith’s Art Academy and at The School of The Art Institute of Chicago (1891). He is most noted for his plein-air landscape paintings and travelled extensively in search of landscapes that appealed to him. His work has been exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago and other museums and galleries. Art critic Eleanor Jewitt had this to say about Rudolph Ingerle, “He paints landscapes like poems. Ingerle pours beauty on a canvas as though it were a rich wine. No one can handle sun and shadows as he does.”

Rudolph Ingerle settled in Highland Park in 1922 and lived on Laurel Avenue. He was active in the community and an ardent supporter of the Library, serving on the Library Board of Trustees in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Ingerle’s work is in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, The Union League Club of Chicago, and the Illinois State Museum, Springfield, among other places. He died in Highland Park in 1950.

The sign stood at the corner of St. John and Laurel Avenues from 1940 until late 1960 when it was removed during renovation. The sign was restored and reinstalled in December of 2002.

William (Bill) Keating is a self-taught artist from Northbrook, Illinois who specializes in hand-formed welded aluminum. Keating originally worked in advertising, but changed his direction mid-career and became a sculptor in 1973. Keating’s work is part of the collections of the Palatine, Illinois Public Library, Standard Oil of Indiana and the Oakton Sculpture Park in Des Plaines, Illinois. In a 1976 documentary about Keating, the artist described his works as “an abstract view of his sense of balance with nature.” He said, “I see metal as part of nature, coming raw from the earth, then refined by man. I strive to bring it back to nature by treating it as part of earth to be formed and managed.” The title of this kinetic sculpture was chosen as a metaphor for the human search for knowledge.

Stained Glass Panel

Designed by Tricia Takata
Executed by Annette and Craig CorbinStained Glass Panel, 1995
Stained glass
Framed: 28 ¾ x 40 ½ in.
Gift of family and friends of Carol Muir in her memory

Tricia Takata, a North Shore School District 112 art teacher, designed the stained glass panel to reflect nature and books, the interests of Carol Muir, a longtime employee in the Library's Youth Services Department. Annette and Craig Corbin of Mountain Light Glassworks in Highland Park created the panel which was dedicated in December 1995.

Untitled Wood Sculpture

Jerry K. DeasyUntitled, 1980
Wood
16 ½ x 49 x 17 in.
Jerry Deasy is a contemporary American sculptor. This piece is a sculptural composition of joined and laminated wood.

Beth Shadur, a Highland Park artist and Artist-in-Education for the Illinois Arts Council, has created over 125 large murals as public, private and community art projects in the United States and Great Britain. She has exhibited widely in the United States and abroad. Her work has been exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago and other museums across the country and is included in many private and public collections.

This mural, located at the entrance of the Youth Services Department, was commissioned to announce the renovation of the Youth Services Department in 2006.

Sylvia Shaw Judson grew up in Lake Forest and was the daughter of well-known architect Howard Van Doren Shaw and the poet Frances (Wells) Shaw. Judson studied at The School of the Art Institute in Chicago on and off between 1915 and 1918 and later in Paris at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière. Her works have been exhibited in museums, at Chicago’s Century of Progress Exposition (1933), and at the New York World’s Fair (1939). Shaw’s work can be found in the collection of the White House, in the offices of the President of the Philippines, and at the Massachusetts State House.

Sylvia Shaw Judson received much posthumous attention in the late 1990s when her Bird Girl sculpture (1938) appeared on the cover of the book “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil,” by John Berendt. The sculpture also appeared in the opening scene of the movie with the same title.

Benediction is located over the doorway leading to the Adult Services Department. The relief is an image of a woman and was originally made as a prototype for a stone angel that Sylvia Shaw Judson created for the Presbyterian-St. Luke Church in Downers Grove in 1951.

Joseph Burlini, a Chicago-area sculptor, creates pieces for public and private spaces. His work is in the collections of The Pentagon and the Chicago Botanic Garden. Burlini’s style ranges from abstract to representational. Wheels are a common theme of his works, which are designed for motion. Burlini has numerous public sculptures in the region, including Balance Machines (Lincoln Mall in Matteson, Illinois) and Circus City (The Aon Center, Chicago).

Beth Shadur, a Highland Park artist and Artist-in-Education for the Illinois Arts Council, has created over 125 large murals as public, private and community art projects in the United States and Great Britain. She has exhibited widely in the United States and abroad. Her work has been exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago and other museums across the country and is included in many private and public collections.

This mural was commissioned as part of the 2006 renovation of the Youth Services Department. The mural includes three dimensional doors that children can open to reveal storybook characters.

View of the Skokie

Frank Charles Peyraud (Swiss/American 1858-1948)

View of the Skokie, 1931

Oil on canvas mounted on wall

74 x 102 in.

Frank Peyraud was born in Bulle, Switzerland. In 1881, he immigrated to Chicago, and lived in the Ravinia area of Highland Park from 1919 until his death in 1948. He was a student of the Art Institute of Chicago and the renowned École des Beaux-Arts, Paris. Peyraud earned a lasting reputation for rural landscapes, especially snow scenes in broadly defined forms and glowing colors. He was one of the first American painters to focus on Midwestern landscape and received numerous awards from the Art Institute of Chicago. Peyraud was known to many as the “dean of Chicago landscape artists” and the Lakeview Museum of Arts and Sciences titled their 1985 catalogue of his work as such. Peyraud died just before his ninetieth birthday.

This work was commissioned for the new library building and installed in August 1931. The Skokie was a marshland located west of Highland Park.

Moonlight on Lake Michigan

Rudolph Frank Ingerle (American, b. Austria, 1879-1950)

Moonlight on Lake Michigan, 1931

Oil on canvas

74 x 102 in.

This painting was commissioned for the new Library building and was installed in August of 1931.

Rudolph Ingerle was born in Vienna, Austria and immigrated to the United States when he was 12. He studied at John Francis Smith’s Art Academy and at The School of The Art Institute of Chicago (1891). He is most noted for his plein-air landscape paintings and travelled extensively in search of landscapes that appealed to him. His work has been exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago and other museums and galleries. Art critic Eleanor Jewitt had this to say about Rudolph Ingerle, “He paints landscapes like poems. Ingerle pours beauty on a canvas as though it were a rich wine. No one can handle sun and shadows as he does.”

Rudolph Ingerle settled in Highland Park in 1922 and lived on Laurel Avenue. He was active in the community and an ardent supporter of the Library, serving on the Library Board of Trustees in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Ingerle’s work is in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, The Union League Club of Chicago, and the Illinois State Museum, Springfield, among other places. He died in Highland Park in 1950.

A History of the Highland Park Public Library

At the July 7, 1887 meeting of the City Council, a number of citizens presented a petition requesting that the council establish and maintain a public library.

On September 14, 1887 the Highland Park City Council adopted an ordinance for the establishment of a tax-supported public library and appropriated $260 annually for its maintenance.

Some people believe that the first home of the public library was MacDonald's Store. However, when the library opened on April 6, 1888, it shared space with the City Council in quarters rented for the council's use. At that time the City Council was renting its meeting place from Frank Hawkins, and met on the first floor of a store building formerly occupied by Charles A. Kuist Hardware. It was located just east of MacDonald's Store on the north side of Central in the block between St. Johns & Sheridan Road.

Books began circulating from the library on April 7, 1888. There were approximately 400 books in the library's collection and each borrower was allowed 1 book for a 2-week loan period. The library was open on Monday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. and on Saturdays from 3 to 5 p.m. and from 7 to 9 p.m. The first librarian was Miss Marsalene Green. She received a salary of $75 per year, which was paid by subscription. She served as librarian for just a few months before her untimely death. Miss Anna Obee was appointed her successor.

In July 1889 the City Council graciously invited the Library to share space in the newly constructed city building. The space allotted to the library was the west half of the rear of the City Clerk's office. Two years later, the city jail was moved to a separate building, and the library doubled its size by expanding into the old jail area.

In May 1891 Mrs. Mary Ann Jennings became the third librarian, a position she held until 1913. Under her leadership, the library saw steady growth. The collection grew from 400 books to over 7,000. The Library began publishing a catalogue of the collection, copies of which could be purchased for 10 cents. The Library didn't use the Dewey Decimal Classification System until 1903 when Miss West, "an expert in modern library methods," was engaged to prepare a new catalogue. Before 1903 books were located in the following general sections: Fiction; History, Biography, and Travel; Juvenile; The Sciences; Poetry; and Art, Essays and Miscellany. Within the sections, each book had a number indicating its physical location.

With a growing collection, it was soon evident that larger quarters were desperately needed. In the spring of 1900, the library board purchased the Young Men's Club House (commonly known as the Atheneum, located on Sheridan Road just north of Central) at a cost of $2,000 ($1,000 of which was contributed by the City Council).

Here the library resided for five years, but by 1903 a movement was already underway advocating the construction of a new building. Mayor Robert G. Evans appointed a commission made up of aldermen, the city attorney, and members of the Woman's Club to confer with the Library Board. The commission contacted Mr. Andrew Carnegie for a financial donation to construct a new library. Mr. Carnegie had many philanthropic interests, but public libraries were the major beneficiaries. Between 1886 and 1919, over 1600 Carnegie library buildings were constructed. Mr. Carnegie was willing to donate $10,000 for the construction of a library building in Highland Park, provided that the city owned the site.

The Atheneum site was deemed unsuitable for the new library, and, even with the sale of the library building, the Library Board did not have sufficient funds to purchase other available sites. Finally, in the spring of 1905, the Library Board received an offer from Mr. Arthur C. Thompson, of Brookline, Massachusetts. He offered to give the city a piece of property upon which to locate the new library. Although not a resident of Highland Park, Mr. Thompson owned an extensive amount of business property in the community. The lot that he gave to the library was located on Laurel Ave. one block south of Central Street, and just east of St. Johns Ave.

The Chicago architectural firm of Patton and Miller was selected to design the new library. Eminently qualified for their commission, Grant Miller and Normand Patton had designed over 100 library buildings during their partnership from 1901 to 1912.

The Highland Park News-Letter (November 11, 1905, p. 4) described the plans for the Carnegie library. "The building is 60 feet front by 40 feet deep, one story high, with basement for a fine assembly room....The roof is to be of tile with best metal gutters. It will be lighted with electricity and gas, heated by hot water, interior wood work of oak, hall floors in mosaic. Exterior Bedford cut stone trimmings, and Portsmouth Ohio glazed paving brick. All fixtures will be of the best, up-to-date in every respect, and the building complete and ready for occupancy will represent an outlay of $17,000."

The clock in this picture of the interior of the Carnegie library was donated by the High School class of 1907 and is still located in the library.

Andrew Carnegie eventually donated $12,000, sale of the Atheneum building netted $4,361. Through a special appropriation, the City Council provided $1,500. The Library Board provided $32.27 to the final cost of the building $17,893.27.

After the building was completed, the Library Board turned its attention to service. Library hours were increased to three hours every week day afternoon and one evening each week. In May 1907 the Library Board passed a motion granting the librarian a vacation and authorizing the president to engage a substitute during the time the librarian was to be absent. In July 1907 the Library offered its first story telling hour. It was for children between the ages of five and nine and proved quite successful. The increases in service and staff required an increase in tax revenues to maintain the Library. The appropriation was raised to $1,500 per year. Mrs. Jennings received a salary of $400 per year and her new assistant, Miss Annie McKenzie, was paid $20 per month. In 1912, a second assistant, Miss Nita Anderson, was hired at a salary of $10 per month.

The Library made additional changes to service in the first decades of the 1900s. It converted to "open shelves," allowing library users to walk into the book stacks and select their own books. Prior to that time, patrons called for a book by writing its shelf location number on a slip of paper, which was handed to the librarian. The term "call number" is still used to refer to a book's shelf location.

Another change for the Library was the addition of a telephone around 1915. This allowed residents to contact the Library from their homes (if they had telephones). In 1915 Highland Park had around 5,000 residents, but only about 1,000 had telephones.

In no time at all the Carnegie library was too small to handle the growing collections and services of the library. In 1914, the Board began purchasing surrounding land with an eye to expanding the building. Plans were delayed with the outbreak of WWI and were considered again in 1920 and 1924 but each time the need had increased even more, and plans for additions never seemed entirely adequate.

The crowded conditions forced the Board to relocate the children's room to the basement in order to provide more space for children's books. The former children's room was converted into a reference room. With a separate children's area, it was necessary to hire a children's librarian. In September 1925, the Board hired Mrs. Eva Crozier on a half-time basis at a salary of $60 per month.

By 1927 it was evident to the Board that the Carnegie library was inadequate and that only an entirely new library would do. The population of Highland Park, just 4,209 in 1910, had grown to approximately 10,000 by 1927. The number of books increased from 6,658 in 1910 to 16,773 in 1927.

When the head librarian, Mildred Crew, resigned in November 1926, the Board made a noteworthy decision---to hire only librarians with college and graduate library school training. To attract a capable, well-trained person, the Board decided to offer a starting salary of $2,700 per year. Cora Hendee was the library's first professional librarian. She arrived in 1927, just in time to assist the Board in planning for a modern library building. She established the historical archives, which includes the photographs that accompany this history. She began a regular column in the local newspaper to feature library events and new titles. For the first time, under her direction, reference and research services were defined as an integral function of the library. She lobbied the Library Board to maintain a steady appropriation for new books despite the onset of the Depression. In 1927, the year she arrived, the Library had 16,773 books. When she left in 1935, there were 30,221. The Library circulated 45,676 items in 1927 and 122,087 in 1935.

In 1928 the City Council proposed a levy increase spread over 7 years to raise the estimated $150,000 to build the new library.

The Chicago architectural firm of Holmes and Flinn (Morris Grant Holmes and Raymond W. Flinn) designed the original modified Gothic style structure built of Wisconsin limestone with Indiana limestone trim. The new library was dedicated on Sept. 20, 1931.

In 1935, Miss Hendee hired a new children's librarian, Inger Boye. Mrs. Boye served as children's librarian for 29 years. Her story hours, summer reading programs, school visits, and personal attention created a lasting image in the minds of many small children. In 1975, a room in the children's department was named for Mrs. Boye. Story times remain an important introduction to books and reading for small children. Each year the youth librarians visit classes in all the Highland Park elementary schools. They also host class and pre-school visitors at the library. The Summer Reading Program allows children to maintain their reading skills during the summer and offers games and prizes for all participants.

Although the Library survived and thrived during the Depression, it was not so fortunate during the war years. Rationing was imposed due to shortages of various kinds. The shortage of fuel oil caused the library to close on Mondays beginning in 1942 and for the entire month of April 1943. The Library also faced staffing shortages, as employees were able to find higher paying work in war industries.

Following the war, the Library still faced a shortage of funds and staff. To aid the Library's fundraising efforts, a Friends of the Library organization was founded in May 1947. Over the years the Friends group has aided the Library in countless ways with funds to purchase books, records (the Friends started a phonograph collection in 1948), art prints (started in 1965), equipment, special programs, and for publicity efforts (the Friends publish the Library's newsletter The Laurels, first issued in 1968).

Joseph Pollock became head librarian in 1958. His first years saw many innovations. These included an extended loan period from 2 weeks to 3 weeks for most materials, and the option of placing reserves on materials by telephone rather than having to appear in person. A curbside book return, known as an "auto page" was installed. A full-time, professionally trained reference librarian was hired.

Over the years, the collections of the Library continued to grow and space for children's materials was particularly inadequate. In 1960, the Library Board decided to build an addition on the west side of the existing library. Bertram Weber was hired to design what is now known as the Children's Wing in the same modified Gothic style of the original building. The cost of this addition was $121,200.

The relative prosperity of the 1950s and 1960s allowed the Library sufficient funds to develop particularly excellent collections. In 1971 the Library had 104,346 books and more than 200 magazine subscriptions. The growing collections and population and the heavy use of the Library necessitated yet another addition. In 1976 a modern adult wing (20,000 sq. ft.) designed by the firm Wendt, Cedarholm & Tippens was added to the south of the original building.

Jane W. Greenfield was appointed Executive Director in 1987. Building improvements and computer technology developments were early priorities. Remodeling to improve access for people with disabilities was completed in 1989 and was followed by renovation plans.
In 1991, a major renovation of the building upgraded heating, ventilation, and electrical systems, and redesigned space layouts in response to changing use patterns. In 1998, the lower level public meeting room and auditorium were remodeled to improve lighting, ventilation, and access. In 2000, the front entrance of the library was redesigned to improve safety and accessibility.

New collections of videos, compact discs, DVDs, CD-ROM titles, and electronic and digital resources were added as they became available.

Computer technologies developed especially rapidly during the 1990s. Computerized information sources began appearing at the library in the mid-1980s. In 1984, the Library replaced its Gaylord book charging machines with an automated circulation system. The card catalog was automated at the same time. By 1989, patrons could access the computer catalog through a dial-in telephone connection from their home computers. In 1996, a Windows version of the computer catalog was introduced and was available via the Internet. In 2000, computer catalog software was installed to give patrons access to their Library patron records via Internet connection. The software allows patrons to renew and reserve titles.

In 1986, the first subscription to an online information database was purchased. Additional computer information sources and CD-ROM titles were added, and computer labs were established for children and adults. In 1996, the Library began providing Internet services. A Library web site was created with access to subscription databases provided by the Library and with links to World Wide Web information sources. In 1998, the Library created a "gateway" web site to community information to provide an index and links to community web pages.

In 2002, Jane Conway joined the staff as Executive Director. Among her initiatives was restoration of a historic library sign that had been designed by artist and former Library Trustee, Rudolf Ingerle in 1940. The sign was returned to its original location on the southeast corner of St. Johns and Laurel Avenues.

The Library inaugurated the 21st Century with the publication of Books that Matter: A List for the Millennium. A compilation of titles submitted by Highland Park readers, the book lists a cross section of popular and classic titles for children and adults. It demonstrates the enduring value of reading, and the vital role of a public library for the residents of Highland Park.

2017

AMENDMENT TO THE OPEN MEETINGS ACT – Public Act 097-0609
Concerning Public Employee Compensation & Benefits
In accordance with Public Act 097-0609, a list of all employees whose total compensation package equals or exceeds $75,000 is available in the Library’s Administrative Office, open 9 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday.

The Library’s Business Manager is the designated Freedom of Information Act Officer. The Business Manager may be reached 9 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday at the Business Offices of The Highland Park Public Library.